Prepare for the 2022 AEP Season With SMS

Originally published June 24, 2021 , last updated September 14, 2022

The Annual Election Period (AEP) represents a busy time for agents who sell Medicare products. Proper preparation is key. Are you prepared? With many clients now preferring methods other than face-to-face interactions, you must be ready to meet through virtual meetings, social media and the like. Senior Market Sales^® (SMS) offers a few tips and resources to help with this process.

1 —Make Sure You Are Licensed, Appointed and Certified

Before the AEP season kicks off, you will want to make sure all license, appointment and certification requirements have been met. But where do you go for help? An SMS marketing consultant can review all of your appointments with you, help you with the carrier certification sites and answer any questions that may arise. Plus, SMS has organized AEP Agent Central, a place where we’ve collected all the tools, technology and resources you need to save time, eliminate mistakes and make more sales during the busy AEP. With nearly four decades in the Medicare market, no one has more knowledge and experience than SMS.

2 – Get Your Supplies

Once you’re certified, you can order your supplies. SMS makes it easy to order marketing materials and enrollment kits. Contact an SMS marketing consultant for direct assistance, or to obtain a “cheat sheet” for obtaining step-by-step directions to ordering supplies from every carrier that works with SMS.

3 – Identify Lead Sources and Prospecting Tools

Leads are critical to success. Whether you're looking for solutions for email, website and social marketing, vendors that help you find leads before the busy AEP season every year, direct mail marketing campaigns or other types of lead generation; the SMS program has you covered. Call your SMS Marketing Consultant to learn more about the Lead Generation program available so that you can develop the right plan for your business.

4 – Begin Using SMS’ Proprietary Technology Tools

SMS has a complete suite of exclusive tools offered at no cost. These tools are designed to help you leverage time, make more money and put your business in a position of distinction. Some of these tools include Lead Advantage Pro^® and Medicare Insurance Direct^® (MID).

Lead Advantage Pro^®

Lead Advantage Pro is the proprietary tool from SMS that lets you take prospects from lead to enrollment in one place. In essence, this platform is designed to simplify your day and maximize your time. In addition, it works well as a means to meet clients’ needs in a compliant way while opening up the methods through which you can meet with clients.

Some Lead Advantage Pro features and benefits:

Agent Initiated Consumer Online Enrollment (AICOE^®) and PDF Enrollment features help you close sales face-to-face as well as over the phone and through the internet.
Tired of going to different carrier websites to see if providers are in-network for Medicare Advantage plans? Check out the exclusive Provider Look-up and Network Search (PLANS) tool.
Run out of supplies? You can download the application for every carrier SMS works with.
Frustrated by Scope of Appointment (SOA) forms? See how easy it is to complete the SOA in less than three minutes.
The Blue Button feature allows Medicare participants the ability to share their prescription drug lists, pharmacies and providers directly with you. Once you’ve obtained your client’s consent, this list can be accurately compiled in minutes.
Maximize Part D sales with All Carrier Part D Quoting

Medicare Insurance Direct^® (MID)

Medicare Insurance Direct is a tool that allows you to help clients help themselves, thus avoiding the need to meet in person. The idea of MID is to pair your good, sound advice regarding a client’s Medicare solution with the convenience of self-enrollment. You can use MID to match beneficiaries with available plans based on individual healthcare, prescription drug needs and estimated out-of-pocket expenses. You send a Personalized Universal Resource Locator (PURL) to your clients that take them to a micro-site displaying the states and carriers that you are properly credentialed to sell, including Medicare Advantage prescription drug plans, Part D and Medicare Supplements. Plus, this platform gives you the ability to quote all Medicare Advantage and Part D plans.

Here’s How MID Works to help make sales without increasing a client’s coronavirus risk:

You set up a consumer-facing website through Medicare Insurance Direct, and personalize it for your business (your site will only show plans you’re licensed and appointed to offer).
Your clients get the convenience of quoting and enrolling in Medicare Advantage and Part D plans online, at their leisure.
You get credit for every sale because you have a custom URL and your agent writing number is associated with the site.

5 – Carrier Enrollment Technology Options

In addition to SMS technology solutions, many carriers that work with SMS have their own technology options, some of which don’t even require the client to have access to the internet. Click here to view specific carrier requirements and options.

6 – Utilize Your Dedicated Med Solutions Team

SMS offers access to a dedicated, licensed and knowledgeable Med Solutions team. They are here to help you every step of the way throughout the AEP season and beyond.

This can be your most successful AEP ever if you utilize what SMS has to offer. Contact a marketing consultant if you have any questions about carriers, certification, supplies, leads or SMS technology. Call 1.877.645.0147 to get connected.